Campaign: We are the BlackBerry boys

Brand: BlackBerry prepaid service on Vodafone

Company: Vodafone

Agency: Ogilvy & Mather

The Campaign

The new BlackBerry TV commercial opens with five stuffy looking management guys dressed in suits and ties singing ?The BlackBerry Boys? song which says ?We wear cool suits, we wear shiny shoes, we are the BlackBerry boys,…we are special, we are clever, we are very very clever.? They think they are cool and the BlackBerry adds to their status.

It?s then that all kinds of people join them, adding a twist to the song as they spout the lines ?we?re the BlackBerry boys, we do chat and we do mail, we do surf and we do all on the move…we?re the BlackBerry boys…? The five corporate guys are surprised and confused as the ones who join them are young and colourful in more ways than one? funky clothes, weird hairdos, et al, depicting a range of professionals and even college students. And as the song plays on, many more youngsters join in. The commercial ends with the tagline: ?BlackBerry on Vodafone Prepaid, not just for office guys. Unlimited chat and internet at Rs 15 daily.?

Our Take

Conceptualised by Oglivy & Mather, the new TV ad is for the launch of BlackBerry services for prepaid users on Vodafone. With the introduction of prepaid services, BlackBerry is now more accessible in comparison to what it used to be earlier. The rates of BlackBerry services have been slashed and one can use the service for just Rs 15 per day.

This is a tricky commercial in the sense that one brand, Vodafone, is using it to redefine or extend the brand position of another brand, BlackBerry. Vodafone uses the ad to move away from the perception that BlackBerry is only for the highly paid business executive.

By showing ordinary people from different walks of life, talking, or rather singing, of the various features that make them a BlackBerry fan, it tries to show that BlackBerry services have gone mainstream and are no longer premium. The song is catchy yet simple. The commercial increases the appeal of the device and of its services too.

The ad concentrates on people more than on the service itself showing the transition of the BlackBerry brand from niche to mass market.

All along, BlackBerry has been positioned as a premium offering but this myth is busted with this ad.

Just hope that the BlackBerry guys are happy about the climb down!

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